The Role of His Life: Comedian-Turned-President Volodymyr Zelensky Rises to the Moment

Scott Roxborough
·5 min read
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When Volodymyr Zelensky was elected president of Ukraine in 2019, a lot of people thought it was a joke. An actor and comedian with no political experience, Zelensky was seen as a lightweight. He had come to national prominence as the producer and star of hit satirical television series Servant of the People, playing an ordinary high school teacher who accidentally becomes Ukrainian president after a video of him condemning government corruption goes viral.

When, in 2017, Zelensky set up his grassroots party, also called Servant of the People, it felt more like a reality TV show than a serious political movement. Even his landslide election — he beat incumbent President Petro Poroshenko with nearly 73 percent of the vote — did little to convince critics that Zelensky was more than a late night show punchline.

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But no one’s laughing now.

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, Zelensky has become the voice of his people. In a series of videos posted on social media since the attack began, Zelensky appears strong, determined and, well, presidential.

On the morning of Feb. 26, after a night of fighting in Kyiv when Russian propaganda was circulating claims Zelensky had fled the Ukraine capital in fear of the advancing troops, the president posted a video of himself on Telegram, a messaging app popular in Ukraine and Russia. Red-eyed, unshaven and obviously exhausted, when Zelensky spoke his voice was calm and determined.

“Good morning to all Ukrainians! There are a lot of fakes out there, … [but] I am here,” he said.

Zelensky’s defiant post was viewed more than 4 million times on Telegram and went viral on Twitter, where it racked up more than 15 million views.

In a later video, also filmed on his smartphone outside the president’s office on Bankova Street in central Kyiv, flanked by his closest advisers and with the Chimaeras, a Kyiv landmark and the country’s official presidential residence, in the background.

“The leader of the party is here,” Zelensky said, showing Davyd Arakhamia, head of Servant of the People. “The prime minister is here,” he noted, showing Denys Shmyhal. Turning the phone back to himself he said, simply: “The president is here. We are all here. Our soldiers are here. The citizens of our country are here. We are all here protecting our independence, our country, and it will continue to be this way. Glory to our defenders. Glory to our heroes. Glory to Ukraine.”

Given that Zelensky had only days earlier revealed an intelligence estimate that he was “target number one” of the Russian forces entering the city, Zelensky’s decision to broadcast his location was remarkable. When the United States offered to evacuate Zelensky from the city, he reportedly said: “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride.”

Zelensky’s knowledge and ease with social media have proved a powerful tool in the current crisis, as has his ability to speak directly to Russian citizens (he’s a fluent Russian speaker) via Telegram, knowing that his speeches denouncing Putin and debunking his claims for the true reasons behind the Ukraine invasion will never be shown on Russian state television.

On the eve of the attack, Zelensky recorded a nine-minute address to the Russian people, in Russian, telling citizens not to believe the lies coming out of Moscow.

“The Ukraine on your news and Ukraine in real life are two completely different countries — and the main difference between them is: Ours is real,” Zelensky said. “You are told we are Nazis. But could a people who lost more than 8 million lives in the battle against Nazism support Nazism?” he noted, dismissing Putin’s claim that the invasion was an attempt to “de-Nazify” Ukraine.

Zelensky, who is Jewish and the decedent of Holocaust survivors, was incredulous.

“How could I be a Nazi? … Explain it to my grandfather, who went through the entire war in the infantry of the Soviet army, and died a colonel in an independent Ukraine.”

That speech seemed to mark Zelensky transformation from entertainer — Zelensky appeared on (and won) Ukraine’s version of Dancing With the Stars in 2006; his credits include dubbing the voice of Paddington Bear in Ukraine — to a national figurehead and wartime leader. Hours before the attack, he said he had tried to call Russian President Vladimir Putin to avert a war and had been met by silence. But if Ukrainians came under attack, Zelensky said they would defend themselves. “When you attack us, you will see our faces — not our backs, but our faces.”

Even longtime observers of Zelensky have been impressed.

“We’re watching Shecky Greene transform into Churchill,” said U.S. political comedian Jon Stewart, discussing Zelensky on his new show, The Problem With Jon Stewart, in a reference to the nightclub comedian and frequent Tonight Show guest, and Britain’s former Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who led the U.K.’s battle against Nazi Germany during World War II.

“It’s remarkable how Zelensky has finally grown into the role,” noted Max Seddon, the Moscow bureau chief of the Financial Times, on Twitter. “When the US warned of Russia’s plans to invade, he was slammed by Ukrainians for not taking it seriously. But when the war became inevitable, Zelensky started playing the president on TV again — he’s a natural.”

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